Drifting Darkness
by Sailor Onyx Pluto
Summary: After Sailor Moon SuperS: The Movie; Two new enemies are making themselves known, along with a new group of Sailor Soldiers with unknown intentions. How will this all play out in the end? Back to working on this again.
1. A Presence from the Dark

**A/N: Takes place after Sailor Moon SuperS: The Movie; Two members of the Dark Kingdom have survived its destruction and are finally emerging in order to take over the Earth. Not only are there new enemies making themselves known, but also new Senshi are coming about with unknown intentions. They also seem much more powerful than the Sailor Senshi, which makes them suspicious of one another. Can they join forces and defeat these new enemies or will they end up fighting with each other?  
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**Drifting Darkness**

**By Sailor Onyx Pluto  
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**Chapter One – A Presence From the Dark**

"Oh no, I can't believe I'm late again! Rei's gonna kick my ass for this one!" Tsukino Usagi dashed downstairs from her room, out the front door and on her way to Hikawa Shrine. Sitting up on the roof of Usagi's house was Luna, her black guardian cat. A white cat was sitting next to her, and was none other than Sailor Venus' guardian, Artemis.

"If she's not running from the enemy or late for school, she's running to the shrine full tilt." Artemis said.

"I wonder if she even realizes that they're not meeting at Rei's today." Luna smirked. However, her smile quickly died away as a thought crossed her mind. "I can sense a new evil about to reveal itself. Should we tell the Sailor Senshi?"

Artemis shook his head. "We should let them be. They seem pretty happy being normal girls."

"I suppose you're right."

* * *

><p>"Oh please don't let her yell at me this time," Usagi pleaded as she continued to run down the street. She wasn't watching where she was going and bumped into her friend, Mizuno Ami. Ami was jolted out of her thoughts as her blond friend slammed into her. "Hi Ami! Gotta run or I'll be… Wait a minute," she skidded to a stop, kicking up a small dust cloud. "How come you're not at the shrine already?" Ami shook her head at her friend's total blonde attitude.<p>

"We're not meeting at the shrine since there hasn't been any recent activity from the any enemies," the blue-haired genius relayed. "As far as I know, Rei's out shopping with Setsuna to help her pick put some fabric for a dress she's making for one of her design classes." Usagi walked back to where Ami was standing and asked,

"Well, since we're not having a Senshi meeting, you wanna go do something? I think I've still got some of my allowance leftover. We could go do some shopping!" Her blue eyes lit up excitedly with the thought of hitting the mall. Ami smiled at seeing her long-time friend so happy-go-lucky and replied,

"Sure. I could use some new books for the summer anyway." Usagi sweatdropped as they made their way to the shopping district, which was already somewhat crowded with people.

"Ami-chan, remind me one of these days to find you a boyfriend. You read and study way too much."

"And it wouldn't hurt you to study a little more to help you get in the best high school classes, Usagi-chan." The blue-haired Senshi chuckled at her friend's face at her suggestion. She clapped a light hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, Usagi. Studying isn't that bad." The blond rolled her eyes playfully.

"Easy for you to say. You have the brains to back it up."

* * *

><p>Unbeknownst to Usagi and Ami, Makoto and Minako were already inside one of the many stores that lined the Juban Shopping District, specifically a slightly less expensive jewelry store. The tall brunette sighed loudly as the idol-chasing blond tried on yet another necklace. This one was laced with diamonds and blue sapphires on a gold woven chain.<p>

"Mina-chan, you've tried on almost every single necklace in this place and we've been here for three hours!" Makoto exclaimed, causing some of the other shoppers to look in their direction. She just ignored their stares and crossed her arms over her chest since her friend seemed to be more interested in admiring her adorned neck in the mirror than listening to her. "Are you listening to me!" she yelled, finally catching the other's attention.

"Sorry, Mako-chan, did you say something?" Makoto growled like a bear and rolled her eyes, which only caused Minako to give her a questioning look. She really could be a total ditz sometimes.

"If you'd been paying attention, you'd realized that we've been in here for three hours and you still haven't bought anything. I was wondering how much longer you were going to take before I just left you here." A light seemed to go on behind the other's eyes and she hung her head slightly. This action caused Makoto to ease up a bit and put on a more relaxed face.

"I'm sorry, Mako-chan. I didn't realize how long I'd been taking, but I was just trying to have a little fun now that we finally have some freedom."

"I know what you mean. Just don't take too much liberty with that. You never know what could happen around here." That seemed to make Minako happy again as she took the necklace off to pay for it, and the cashier placed it in a lovely black box with the store's name on it glided in gold. The two friends then exited the store to find their next stop in their day of shopping.

* * *

><p><em><strong>"Dark Power Energy Blast!"<strong>_ Dark power shot out of the sky at a creature that had the height and features of a dragon, but it wasn't necessarily bright. The blast of energy smacked it dead-on in the large neck, sending it to the ground. Thankfully, the street was one of the deserted ones, but that didn't stop a shockwave from expanding outward about ten kilometers due to the creature's size. The shockwave was enough to make the ground shake like an earthquake that traveled to the shopping district and caused all the pedestrians to scatter at once. Usagi and Ami, however, had enough sense to avoid the panicking masses and also knew enough that this earthquake was not a natural occurrence.

"I was hoping we'd have a chance to relax, but that's one of the benefits of saving the world. _**Moon Crisis, make-up!**_" Usagi held her brooch in the air and turned into Super Sailor Moon.

"Life would be boring otherwise. _**Mercury Star Power, make-up!**_" Ami became Super Sailor Mercury and immediately pulled out her mini supercomputer to figure out the disaster's source. After about a minute, she put the device away. "Look like we've got a youma attack and something else, but I can't quite tell what, about five kilometers in that direction." She pointed to the west of where they currently were and darted off across the rooftops. At that same moment, Makoto and Minako had also hidden from the running people to transform.

"Just like old times again, eh Mina-chan? _**Jupiter Star Power, make-up!**_" Makoto spun her henshin wand and quickly changed into Super Sailor Jupiter.

"Amen to that, Mako-chan. _**Venus Star Power, make-up!**_" Following suit, Minako transformed into Super Sailor Venus and they both took off to the west side of the shopping district unaware that Moon and Mercury were already on their way.

"I don't think I've ever seen a youma that ugly before," Sailor Moon commented when she saw the creature slowly trying to maneuver itself off the broken concrete.

"I'd have to agree with you there, Sailor Moon. Give me a moment and I'll scan him for weaknesses." Super Sailor Mercury activated her visor and minicomputer to find the creature's weaknesses, but before she could finish, it suddenly jumped towards them.

"Oh no you don't! _**Eternal Darkness Planet Plunge!**_" A planet shape of dark energy sped toward the monster and hit it full force in the back of the head. It froze in midair for a second then exploded in a shower of black blood and body parts. The two Senshi on the ground ran for cover, but ended up getting splashed by the liquid.

"Yuck! I hope this stuff washes out." Sailor Moon exclaimed, examining the stuff in her hair. Sailor Mercury was occupied with something else.

"Who's that?" She pointed to the black-clad figure that seemed to be hovering in the sky. Before she could voice her question, another voice broke in.

"Who are you?" shouted a Super Sailor Jupiter. Her voice was unmistakable. Moon and Mercury turned to see her standing with Super Sailor Venus, and both of them were standing in combat-ready positions. The woman floating in the air, dressed as a Senshi, waved away Jupiter's question as if it didn't matter to her.

"That is none of your concern right now, Senshi of Earth. The time will come when you will know who I am, but not now. We will meet again. Farewell." The mysterious Sailor Scout disappeared in a black flash, along with the youma's remains.

"Who was that?" Venus questioned.

"I don't know, but let's go find Luna and Artemis. Maybe they can explain this." Mercury replied. The rest of the Senshi nodded and they left the area.


	2. The Dark Twins

**A/N: I'm surprised that I've gotten the second chapter up so quickly, but this is one I've been working on since before I had a account. This introduces the two surviving members of the Dark Kingdom and a little bit of background on them as well.  
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**Chapter Two – The Dark Twins**

In a dark void of space, once known as the Dark Kingdom, sat a lone figure on an immense throne that used to be occupied by Queen Beryl, staring into a crystal clear pool and rippling in the water was an image of the Sailor Senshi on Earth.

"Queen Beryl was so stupid to break out of her Dark Kingdom. She thought because she defeated the Moon Kingdom that she could kill the Sailor Senshi 1,000 years later. They did a great job in killing her. Now, all I have to do is kill that Sailor…. What was her name again?"

"Sailor Moon."

"Hmm?" the figure's monologue was interrupted by a male's voice from the darkness. He egressed out of the shadows dressed in a gray uniform with gold trim and dark blue mid-calf boots. He had black, short cut hair, and glowing orange eyes. His pale skin had a slight blue tint to it.

"What do you want, Tausonite?" the other snapped. Tausonite just shrugged.

"Nice to see you too, Titanite," He responded, chuckling. Titanite just groaned. She wore a red uniform with green trim and high black boots. Her eyes were sky blue, her dread locked hair was violet/red-violet, and her skin was tinted silver ever so slightly.

"What are do you want?" she asked him again.

"Well, I overheard your little… dilemma, and was curious as to what you plan to do about it." She smirked at her brother. Inside, she actually despised her twin sibling, but he was useful at times.

"I'm taking care of a little problem that Queen Metalia and Queen Beryl left unfinished. The Sailor Senshi; I'm sure you've heard of them." Tausonite nodded, his black hair falling in his face. He had heard about the Treelings, the Black Moon Family, Mistress Nine, Snow Princess Kaguya, Queen Nehelenia, and the most recent, Badiyanu. "If you want to help, you're more than welcome, but don't get in my way." Titanite finished. Tausonite gave her a look, signifying that he wanted nothing to do with her plans, but naturally, she didn't believe him.

"So, what exactly is your plan for taking care of this… problem?" he asked uninterestedly. Titanite grinned; she knew better than that.

"I might send out a youma to gather information, or I might just strike whenever I feel like it. I haven't decided yet." She stated calmly. Tausonite just shrugged, and walked back into the shadows from which he came. As soon as he was sure he was out of her hearing range, he began to laugh insanely.

"Your mission will not be so easy to complete, my sister." He continued to laugh as he entered his own chambers that used to belong to his once-best friend, Nephrite. The two of them used to debate endlessly about the best way to rule the Solar System once Queen Metalia took it over and would argue about who was better at using the stars to find high energy spikes. "You always were a great mental sparring partner, my old friend," Tausonite said to the portrait on the far wall. The portrait of the dead general just stared out at him with its cold blue eyes. The man just sighed to himself and proceeded to pour a glass of dark red wine into one of the many onyx goblets he had. Taking a long sip of the intoxicating liquid, his thoughts of the past continued to roll around in his mind: The way Jadeite used to constantly hit on Titanite despite the fact that he was an asshole; how Tausonite and Zoisite used to get into the most brutal brawls after one of them failed at a mission, but they would always laugh about it afterwards; when him and Nephrite would just talk for hours about everything and nothing as if they were just two friends without a care in the universe. The last thought caused a single tear to drop from the general's eye as he downed the rest of his drink and poured himself another. Unknown to all the other generals and minions of the Dark Kingdom, especially Queen Beryl (and thankfully she never found out), Tausonite and Nephrite were lovers, but unlike Kunzite and Zoisite. Whenever they would go out to collect energy or whatever else their leader had them do, they would complete their duties, but afterwards they would find somewhere to indulge in their hidden feelings for one another. Tausonite could remember how soft and silky Nephrite's long auburn hair felt when he ran his hands through it while kissing him until he was out of breath. He remembered the other man's smile, so full of love and devotion, after they had just gotten through ravishing each other in the throes of forbidden passion.

Downing his second glass of wine and shedding one final tear for his dead friend and lover, Tausonite composed himself and walked back to the throne room where he heard his sister's hideous laughing before he'd even reached her chamber.

"Yes. That will work perfectly." Titanite gloated to herself. Tapping a button on the leather gauntlet on her left forearm that was studded with various buttons, a form materialized about ten feet from where she was sitting. The creature had purple skin, black hair, and colorless eyes that glinted with evil. Talon claws protruded from its fingers and gleaming fangs slid over its black lips, which were twisted into a sinister smile.

"You summoned me, Lady Titanite?" the creature asked, bowing.

"I have a job for you, Razor." She skipped the formalities and got right to the point. She saw her brother come out of the shadows again, but ignored him. "I want you to go to Earth, and find the Sailor Senshi. As you know, they have defeated a number of dark forces, including Queen Beryl and Metalia. I want to know what they're capable of and what makes them all so powerful. Take this with you." She cupped her hands together, and a silver square-shaped computer appeared. It had a small black screen with a keypad underneath. It floated out of her hands and set itself in Razor's hand. "That minicomputer will scan any human you point it at, and will record power levels, the Senshi's name, and their power type. Do you understand?" Razor nodded in affirmation. Titanite smiled slightly. "You have your orders. Dismissed." Razor disappeared in a puff of purple and black smoke to the Earth dimension. Tausonite looked at the spot where the creature was and sauntered out of the shadows further. Titanite was examining her nails absently when the other spoke:

"Why did you send Razor on that mission? Why not Spiral, or even Galactic? They're much more reliable and trustworthy than he is." Titanite stopped looking at her nails long enough to give her brother a look that said "Don't question me" and looked back down again.

"Given his past record, no, Razor isn't very trustworthy, but I figured why not give him a chance to play his cards right. Seeing as how many chances Beryl gave you, you shouldn't be surprised by my giving Razor another one." Tausonite's face was flaring red in an angry blush. If he were stronger, he would've taken the woman out a long time ago, despite the fact that they were twins, but his powers had depleted since the downfall of the Dark Kingdom. He had silently wondered to himself how the other had remained so strong after all this time. "Razor will deliver the information I want," she said, standing up. "In the meantime, I suggest that you don't attempt to anger me further, or you will be looking at a fate that was even worse than Jadeite's." With that chilling remark left to hang over his head, Titanite left the throne room, vanishing into the shadows to go to her own quarters. As soon as she disappeared, Tausonite visibly shuddered at what she had said. The thought of 'Eternal Sleep' was terrifying enough on its own: trapped in a land of nightmares and having remembered every minute of it. He didn't want to think about what could be worse than that.

As soon as Titanite reached her own living chambers, she cast a spell around it to muffle anything that her brother or any wandering minions might hear, and collapsed to the cold stone floor with a loud sob. She could play the hard-ass bitch when she needed to, but when she was alone, she let the whole façade drop, just like she did when she was with Jadeite. As far as to what her brother and anyone else knew, Jadeite was just an asshole that thought of nobody but himself and was always trying to hit on her. What they didn't know was that her and Jadeite were secret lovers and they would indulge in each other as often as possible. It wasn't like it was a grand love affair; just two lonely human beings looking for some companionship and they just happened to find it in one another. They used to spend hours just looking at each other, not saying a word, just one worshiping the other after a night of heated passion.

"I'll never have that again, ever," Titanite said to herself as she looked at the picture of her and Jadeite that was next to her enormous bed. It was true that he was still locked away in his 'Eternal Sleep' capsule, but no one knew how to break it except the crazy psycho bitch that put him there and now she was dead. Titanite screamed like a wounded animal and punched the wall next to her until her knuckles were red and bloody. "Fuck you, Beryl! I should've killed you when I had the chance back in the Silver Millennium!' She yelled at the top of her lungs until her throat was raw and she couldn't yell anymore. After she calmed down and composed herself, she used her powers to heal her hands and smiled wickedly, "I guess if I ever get to meet this Sailor Moon, I'll have to shake her hand for doing what I failed to do so long ago." The woman laughed to herself and flopped onto her king-sized bed. "If I don't kill her first, that is." With that last thought satisfying her, she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	3. Dark Arguments and Strategies

**Chapter Three – Dark Arguments and Strategies**

"For the love of fucking Nemesis, Nereza! What is the matter with you? You let those Senshi discover you and now they're going to start looking for all of us! This is exactly why I should've been appointed leader instead of you!" screamed a loud female voice with a high pitch that echoed off the black jasper walls. She was dressed as a Senshi, but the uniform was black instead of white and if one were to look closely, it resembled a darker version of Sailor Moon's first fuku.

"Oh shut up, Serenata! If you guys had shown up when I'd called for you then this wouldn't have been a problem! This is exactly why _I_ was appointed leader instead of you, so don't go pinning this shit on me!" another feminine voice shouted back. The leader was clothed in a black-and-midnight blue fuku and yelled back just as loud. She also reached forward and yanked hard on the other's gray-black waist-length hair, causing her to cry out in pain. "And don't you ever, ever question my leadership again, Sailor Dark Moon!"

"Okay, okay, Sailor Dark!" Moon screamed, trying to wrestle her hair from her leader's grasp. "I swear I'll never question you again! Now, let me go!" Sailor Dark then released her underling's hair, watching as she rubbed her scalp and saw a small glare in her yellow eyes. Dark just glared back with her black-eyed gaze and Moon cowered in fear.

"Jesus Dark, do you have to be so hard on her?" asked another Senshi who looked to be working on something on a computer. "None of us responded to your call, yet you're placing all the blame on her." Dark hung her head slightly, her black hair falling into her face. She pushed it back roughly and looked at the other Senshi.

"I'm well aware of this, Leilah," she replied with a slight annoyance. "However, when I am absent, Moon is supposed to act as leader and failed to do so, therefore, she takes the heat for all of you. Although, since none of you responded, I could very well take my disappointment out on the whole team." Leilah suddenly stood up as if the statement were a challenge. Her black-gloved fists were caked over with ice and her ice blue eyes were blazing. "I wouldn't do that if I were you, Sailor Dark Mercury. You know damn well that I'm stronger than all of you put together and then some, so just continue with what you were doing." The darkly clad Mercury begrudgingly calmed her demeanor because she knew what was said was true and willed the ice to melt away as she resumed her work.

"Hey Mercury, what exactly are you working on?" A fourth soldier seemed to emerge from the darkness surrounding the large chamber and stood next to the small table that Mercury was seated at. She glanced up to acknowledge her and went back to her work.

"I'm trying to figure out what that creature was and quite possibly who sent it. Maybe I can decipher what their motives are as well." She looked up again and momentarily stopped typing. "Why? You have something more fun in mind, Kenina?" Kenina's purple eyes twinkled mischievously and she pulled on one of the tails from her brown/blond pointed odangoes.

"Oh, I'm sure I could think of a few things that we could be doing right now that may be considered fun." That was when Sailor Dark interjected.

"You two can fuck each other when we discover who our enemy is, Mars. Not to mention make sure that those Earth Senshi don't find us because they could make things very complicated, especially Moon's counterpart." The last comment caused Moon to scowl but she didn't say anything, knowing that she already in enough trouble.

"Sorry boss." Mars said in submission and slumped into a black leather armchair that seemed to materialize out of nowhere. The only sounds for several minutes was the click-clack of keys and the clicking of Sailor Dark's heeled boots, until a deep feminine voice resonated from the darkness.

"So what the hell are we supposed to do in the meantime?" The source of the voice was a Senshi in a black, midnight blue, and dark yellow fuku and she stood taller than the rest of her companions. "I say we make sure that those inferior Earthlings don't get in our way because you know they're bound to sooner or later, Dark."

"While I share your concerns as usual, Esen," Nereza replied while passing a hand over her eyes. "I wouldn't worry about them right now since they have absolutely no clue what's going on either." Esen crossed her arms over her chest and fumed. Nereza rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Esen. You just need to chill the fuck out right now! I have absolutely no tolerance for insubordination at this point, so why don't you go find Charna and have her use her mirror if you're so damned uptight about this minor problem!" Esen looked at her leader with a stunned look that said she couldn't believe what she just heard. She decided that it was better to not incite her leader further and decided to go find Charna.

"Sorry, Sailor Dark," she apologized. "I won't do anything until you say otherwise." Dark seemed to relax, if only a little.

"Thank you, Sailor Dark Uranus. Now, go find Sailor Dark Neptune and have her calm you down." As Uranus was about to make her exit to go find her girlfriend, Mercury suddenly shot up out of her seat.

"You guys are not going to fucking believe this!" The soldiers in the chamber gathered around the dark genius to see what had startled her so much. After reading the data, Dark Mars looked at her lover with a very perplexed expression.

"This can't be right. You must've input something wrong," there was a slight tremor in her voice since they all knew that Dark Mercury was extremely thorough and never made a mistake.

"This says that the creature I fought came from the Dark Kingdom and since we all know that Sailor Moon killed Queen Beryl, there has to be someone else in charge now. The question is who? It can't be any of her four underlings since Jadeite was put into 'Eternal Sleep', and the other three were killed."

"So then it has to be someone that they missed and it looks like we have to finish what they started, i.e. clean up their leftovers." A woman an inch shorter than Dark Uranus made an appearance in a black, dark green, and dark pink sailor uniform.

"I guess so, Tiamat," said another girl in a black, dark orange and navy blue fighting uniform. Her eyes were dark brown and her hair was ruby red in a long ponytail. Tiamat looked to the other soldier that spoke to her and rolled her dark green eyes.

"Thank you so much for another blinding burst of insight on your part, Samorn." Samorn's eyes blazed golden and she took a fighting stance. Tiamat was about to do the same when a black blade suddenly intervened.

"Honestly now, don't you two ever call it quits!" the owner of the weapon was two inches shorter than Samorn, but she was by no means a pushover. Her deep brown hair was tied into two wavy ponytails and her deep brown eyes blazed black with her anger. Tiamat quickly backed down and the blade was retracted with just the slightest hesitation.

"At least you don't think I'm a ditz, Duana." Samorn then put her arm around the Senshi and gave her a passionate kiss, which she returned with equal intensity. Nereza just rolled her eyes at the three and continued to read the small amount of information displayed on the screen.

"If you two are done lip-wrestling over there," she interjected in an authoritative tone, causing them to disengage begrudgingly. "I believe I've come up with a strategy to help us figure out who's in charge of the Dark Kingdom now."

"And what exactly would that be?" asked a tall Senshi who stepped out of the darkness to stand next to Tiamat. Sailor Dark was about to her boiling point and she lashed out with a small burst of her dark powers causing all of the Senshi in the room to drop to their knees.

"I've had just about enough of the insubordination of this team and am about to do away with all of you!" She waited for her underlings to stand back up on wobbly legs. "However, as much as I'd like to do that at times, I do not like to waste my resources when they are still useful to me. Now, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn and Pluto, if you all are done interrupting me, I was about to say that if we cause enough of a ruckus, there's the high probability that we'll draw out this new Dark Kingdom commander and maybe even the Earth Senshi as well." She waited to see if anyone disagreed with her and when no one did, she finished:

"Moon, I want you to take Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, and go to the Earth dimension. Blend in with the human population in Tokyo and see if you can find out some more on the Earth Senshi." Moon bowed in obedience and quickly vanished, followed by the other four soldiers. "Uranus, I want you four to attempt to find one of the Dark Kingdom's minions that I'm sure by now they have wandering around in Tokyo and draw it out. If we're lucky, the 'owner' will show up themself. If not then at the very least you'll run into your Sol counterparts." The last four Senshi also teleported out of the chamber and Sailor Dark was left alone. She walked over to the computer and reread the small bit of data that was left and a half-grin came to her lips.

"So Titanite, decided to make yourself known, haven't you?" she questioned to the screen. "I wonder if you've brought your brother along with you."

**A/N: Copy and paste this DeviantArt link if you want to see the Dark Senshi:** .com/gallery/32394896


	4. Fiery Predictions

**A/N: Finally got around to updating this one, and I'm going to start focusing a little bit more on Usagi and Mamoru. As always, R&R!  
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**Chapter Four – Fiery Predictions**

Usagi, Ami, Makoto, and Minako put the rest of their day on hiatus as they walked to Usagi's house to pick up the cats and were on their way to the Hikawa Shrine. Since the sun was out and the air was warm, they opted to walk instead of taking the bus, which gave them more space to talk about the most recent youma and who had taken it out before they could.

"Are you four telling me that you never even had a chance to fight the youma because another Senshi killed it first?" Luna asked as the girls finished explaining what had happened.

"She was dressed in the same uniform, except it was all black, which I've never seen before and her powers looked like they came from darkness," Usagi added as she adjusted the straps of her new pink bunny backpack. She almost always took it with her everywhere she went. The other three nodded and the cats looked extremely puzzled for they had never, in all their years, seen or heard of a Senshi wearing a black fuku or having those kinds of powers.

"What do you think, Artemis?" Minako asked her pet. He shrugged; as best a cat could for he had no idea either. Makoto looked frustrated and also like she wanted to punch someone's face in.

"Why can't we ever have a break from fighting? Last time we were attacked by three elves and some rotten candy, and now a dragon the size of a skyscraper and then some Senshi obliterates it in one fell swoop?" She pulled on her ponytail in agitation. "There's gotta be something more to all of this," she said as they climbed the stone steps to the shrine.

"Got to be something more to what?" Rei asked, as she happened to be in earshot when the comment was said. She had long returned from her shopping trip with Setsuna when the older woman told her that she had something else to attend to. The raven-haired teenager stopped sweeping when she saw the looks on her friends' faces and put her broom away. The priestess then motioned for everyone to follow her inside to her room where they could talk privately. As they slid their shoes off at the entrance, Rei went to the room of the Sacred Fire and started to put herself into a trance. The other four kneeled on the floor behind her as she chanted quickly: "Rin, Pyo, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen!" The fire roared, sending out a blast of heat that the girls had to shield themselves from and two dark shadows appeared in the flames. The only things visible was the fact that one was male, one was female, and they had glowing orange and sky blue eyes, respectively. Rei focused again to get more information, but the fire returned to its normal size and the shadows vanished.

"And here I thought we were finally able to have normal lives. I guess that just goes to show that you shouldn't hope for too much." Usagi seemed especially sad by the fact that the shadows were obviously evil and that they'd have to fight once again. The others held sympathetic looks for their long-time friend since all any of them wanted was a normal life, but that was never going to happen in this lifetime. Wiping the sudden sweat from her forehead, Ami spoke:

"I guess we'll have to wait until the next youma or one of these people appears before we can do anything because my computer didn't get any data from that dragon-creature." The rest of them sighed.

"I'll try another reading tonight, but I highly doubt I'm going to get anything else from the fire." Rei said, feeling dejected; She always felt that way when the fire didn't tell her what she needed to know. Minako looked at her watch, making note of the time.

"Since it's almost 4, I suggest we call it a day. Besides, I've gotta get home to help my mom with dinner," she stood up to leave. "She's trying to get us to act like a family." The blonde rolled her eyes at the notion, making her friends giggle.

"Speaking of dinner, I've gotta get home and start cooking something for myself since my mother's working late again." Ami followed Minako and Artemis out, leaving Usagi, Luna, Makoto, and Rei. The thunder Senshi let out a groan of frustration.

"Fighting again. I'm getting so damn sick of this. I know it's our duty, but sometimes, it'd be nice to go for a couple months without something like this happening." Rei and Usagi nodded in agreement and Luna just shook her head.

"I know it's hard for you all, but it will pay off in the end. Setsuna has told you that and Chibi-usa is living proof of it." Usagi blushed slightly at the mention of her future daughter and that suddenly made her wonder how the little brat was doing. Makoto then stood up and stretched.

"Well guys, I'm gonna get going here too. Need to do some homework and have some dinner myself. Keep me updated, all right?" The remaining two Senshi nodded and the tall teenager exited the shrine.

"Usagi, speaking of homework…" Luna began and the blonde just rolled her eyes. She knew what her cat was hinting at, but she didn't want to do it.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're going, Luna," She reluctantly stood up. "Rei, call me if anything pops up, okay?" The priestess nodded. "However, before I go home, I'm gonna go see if Mamoru's off work yet. Haven't seen him for a while." Usagi grinned widely at the thought and Rei couldn't help but share in her friend's mirth. Luna, on the other hand, just groaned in aggravation. Sometimes that girl just couldn't keep her mind on anything.

"I'll see you later, Usagi-chan," Rei said as Sailor Moon left the shrine with an enthusiastic wave. As the sun was beginning to set, Sailor Mars turned to go back inside, but not before giving a glance to the changing sky. "I hope we'll be able to make it through this one," she said to no one in particular.

* * *

><p>Usagi skipped happily down the street in the direction of the Starlight Tower where Mamoru's apartment was, hoping that he was home from work already. She entered the luxurious building, rode the elevator up to the top floor, and keyed her way in, just to find the place empty. Although disappointed, she shrugged and went inside anyway with Luna following her.<p>

"I really wished you'd go home to get your homework done, Usagi," The cat spoke in a motherly tone. Usagi just scoffed and waved a hand dismissively at her guardian.

"Come on, Luna. Do you really think I haven't learned a thing or two in my time as Sailor Moon?" The cat raised an eyebrow at her, but dropped her jaw when she saw her mistress produce her assignments from the pink bunny backpack she'd been carrying. As she laid them out on the coffee table in the living room, she smiled, "I am gonna be in high school soon and since you and Ami have been harping on me to get my grades up, I finally decided to do something about it." Luna was absolutely shell-shocked and still was even when Chiba Mamoru walked in to find his surprise sitting on his couch, and doing her homework no less!

"Usako? What brings you here?" She grinned when she heard the pet name he used for her and put her pen down to give him a hug.

"I haven't seen you for a while, Mamo-chan and decided to stop by for a visit," she kissed him passionately and he returned it just as intensely. "Plus, I could use some help with my homework. I've gotten pretty far on my own, but you know math was never one of my better subjects." Mamoru placed a hand on her cheek and she closed her eyes as he caressed her smooth skin.

"Are you sure that's all you had in mind?" he asked her mischievously. Still sitting on the floor, Luna decided it was time to make her exit and slid through the door that was still slightly open. Out in the hallway, she pushed the door closed behind her with a paw and made her way to the stairs leading to the ground floor and outside.

Opening her eyes, Usagi saw that her cat was gone and smiled deviously at her boyfriend.

"Did you have something else in mind, Mamo-chan?" she asked, although she knew full well what he was hinting at. His blue eyes sparkled as he locked his apartment and gave her a mind-blowing kiss that made her knees weak.

"I suppose I could think of a few other things we could be doing." With her homework forgotten, the couple joined hands and went to the back bedroom.


End file.
